The subject matter disclosed herein relates generally to medical imaging systems, and more particularly to imaging systems having multi-column detector geometries or arrangements.
In nuclear medicine (NM) imaging, such as single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) or positron emission tomography (PET) imaging, radiopharmaceuticals are administered internally to a patient. Detectors (e.g., gamma cameras), typically installed on a gantry, capture the radiation emitted by the radiopharmaceuticals and this information is used, by a computer, to form images. The NM images primarily show physiological function of, for example, the patient or a portion of the patient being imaged.
Multi-column detector systems may be used to provide a relatively large number of different views of the object. Iterative reconstruction algorithms may be used, for example, to provide improved image quality and/or support non-conventional system geometries. However, iterative algorithms generally require substantially more calculations than other approaches, resulting in the requirement of relatively large computational resources and/or relatively long reconstruction times. In particular, forward projection and back projection operations may contribute substantially to the required computational resources and/or reconstruction times.